all-pervasive

adjective

all-per·​va·​sive ˈȯl-pər-ˈvā-siv How to pronounce all-pervasive (audio)
-ziv
Synonyms of all-pervasivenext
: spread throughout and affecting all parts of something
Still, he believes fear of lawsuits is all-pervasive in medicine and drives up health care costs.— Ridgely Ochs
all-pervasiveness noun

Examples of all-pervasive in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Maybe, but Yellowstone is too valuable, and too all-pervasive, to end. — Kristen Baldwin, EW.com, 16 Dec. 2024 There is no person, no moment, no experience, devoid of the all-pervasive oneness of the Ribbono shel Olam. — Rabbi Yosef Yitzchak Jacobson, Sun Sentinel, 9 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1808, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of all-pervasive was in 1808

Rhymes for all-pervasive

See All Rhymes for all-pervasive

Browse Nearby Words

allozooid
all-pervasive
all-play-all
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“All-pervasive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/all-pervasive. Accessed 30 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on all-pervasive

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for all-pervasive

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
burrowing owl athene cunicularia tilts its head outside its burrow on marco island florida
Guess the Curious Origins of These Everyday Words Oh, that’s where that comes from…
See All